This article is from the Australian Property Journal archive
THE former Electric Lamp Manufacturers (Australia) (ELMA) site in inner Newcastle has changed hands for $31 million, in one of the Hunter Region’s largest industrial investment sales in recent years.
The buyer, a national investor, intends to give the 26-tenant retail, office and industrial complex at 54 Clyde Street in Hamilton North a “facelift”.
ELMA was borne out of a venture between Philips, General Electric Company Ltd, British Thomson-Houston Company Ltd and Siemens Electric Lamps and Supplies Ltd (UK) in 1931. The 2.81-hectare site was the home to ELMA for over 70 years, and was where almost all of Australia’s electric lamps were produced over that period. At its peak, more than 750 people worked from the factory.
At its closure in 2002, ELMA had 220 employees, and an annual production capacity of 45 million to 50 million incandescent lamps and 13 million to 15 million fluorescent tubes.
The site has undergone multiple changes over the years. Today, it has a building area of 2.11 hectares that supports a diverse tenant mix of 26 businesses, including a Lifeline op shop and recruitment firm Verve Partners, generating gross income of nearly $2.15 million per annum plus GST.
“The site’s attractiveness as an investment opportunity was clearly underscored by the interest generated in the market,” said selling agents Brad Crouch and Benjamin Morello from Commercial Collective.
The sale campaign gathered 79 leads and six competitive offers.
“The new owner, a national investor, plans to enhance the site further by continuing to lease to new tenants, nurturing existing tenant relationships, and implementing significant property upgrades.
Morello said the “combination of the property’s rich history, diverse tenant mix, and prime location presented a unique investment opportunity”.
